“The Word made flesh,” according to William Temple, is the most important phrase in all of Christianity because it affirms flesh as the vehicle and instrument for spirit. Although some scholars have described Jesus in John’s Gospel as a detached “god who seems to glide over the face of the earth,” a closer look reveals how much John’s Jesus takes great delight …
View course details “The Sensual Gospel of John: Experiencing the Fourth Gospel through the Five Senses”

What does it mean to lead during a time of religious, sociocultural, and environmental upheaval? What can churches do differently to better reflect and nurture gospel values and God’s dream of a just, reconciled, Spirit-filled world? This course in missional leadership will ask these and related questions. We will explore concepts and experience practices of …
View course details “Changing Church: Missional Practices and/for Beloved Community”

It has become rather commonplace to suppose that Anglican Christians care mostly about liturgy and not very much about theology. That’s not true! Anglican traditions exhibit a rich and diverse history of theological reflection. Anglicans have always insisted that that how Christians think and talk about God makes a critical difference in what Christians believe. …
View course details “What We Believe: Theology in the Anglican Tradition”

What is particular and peculiar about the Bible in Anglicanism?  What do Anglican bring to their reading, study, and interpretation of the Bible?  How does the Bible affect the way Anglicans live out their faith through worship, study, and many forms of ministry and service?  In answering these questions this course studies how the Bible …
View course details “Praying the Old Testament”

Surveys the Reformation in Britain and Ireland from the accession of Henry VIII (1509) to the death of Elizabeth (1603). Identifies the historiographical debates and the perspectives of modern scholarship. Assesses the condition of the late medieval church in respect of vitality, institutional disfunction, and reform. Provides a detailed examination of developments under Henry VIII …
View course details “Reformation in Britain and Ireland”

This course is both for the student preacher and the experienced preacher. Preaching is an integral part of the Anglican tradition. This course builds on previous training in homiletics but is appropriate for preachers with extensive or limited experience. Throughout the course, the spirituality of preaching will be stressed especially for preachers involved in bivocational …
View course details “Anglican Homiletics”

The history of our Church centers on 2 books: The English Bible and The Book of Common Prayer. Learn how Episcopalians read these two books and how that knowledge shapes our ministry. Scholarship funds to help you  pay for this course are available if you can demonstrate need and if you are a member of …
View course details “Anglican Approaches to Ministry”

An opportunity to read and discuss influential ministry texts in community online. About this event This event is brought to you by the department of Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary There are many texts related to ministry that can challenge and make us better. It can be difficult to prioritize reading these books with …
View course details “Formation Fundamentals Book Group (Four series)”

Ethics in the Anglican tradition draws on a rich history of discourse as we strive to engage with our faith, living it out in an imperfect world and Church. Whether we are struggling to justify sacramental liturgy and church hierarchy in the face of Puritan attack, or determining church policy on inclusion of women and LGBTQIA+ people, Anglicans …
View course details “Facing Choices: Ethics in the Anglican Tradition”

The Diaconate is an online course for deacons, deacons in formation, and those wishing to be better grounded in a sound understanding of The Sacred Order of Deacons including especially, members of local discernment committees and members of Commissions on Ministry. The course will consider the history of the Order of Deacons—what is helpful and what is …
View course details “The Diaconate”